Category: Features

Story and Photo by Ted Lerner

(Doha, Qatar)””With a super cool demeanor and a red hot stroke, Yukio Akagariyama of Japan won the 2011 World 9-ball Championship, defeating the Philippines Ronnie Alcano in a tense and scintillating finals match on Friday night, 13-11.

Akagariyama won the title with a brilliant display of pressure packed 9-ball before a cheering partisan crowd of close to 1500 people, most of them Filipinos, at the Al Sadd Sports Club in Doha, Qatar.

The victory capped what has been a tremendous recent surge for the 36 year old. Back in May Akagariyama made it to the semi-finals of the World 10-ball Championship in Manila. Then in early June, he placed 5th at the China Open in Shanghai.

In Doha Akagariyama played solid and steady all week. But he also had moments when mistakes crept into his game, especially late in matches during the knockout stages, when the pressure became too much to bear. But always the 36 year old from Nagano quietly sucked it up, and got right back down to business and made it across the finish line. It’s exactly what happened on Friday night.

By Sally Lee  Photos courtesy of Carla Bonner

Tulsa, Oklahoma USA-  It had been a very long 39 months since England’s Allison Fisher had won a WPBA Pro Tour stop title. And over 4 years had passed since her last US Open finals. Amazingly, it had been almost as long since her last ESPN match appearance in the United States. What had once become a routine custom to see the “Duchess of Doom” at the end of every event (and usually winning it), had now become a high mountain to climb for her. With Asian dominance in women’s pool the new standard, and teenage World Champions coming out of the woodwork left and right, it seemed to some that Allison’s best days were well behind her. Fisher changed the minds of all doubters worldwide by winning her 5th US Open Championship last week.

Story and Photo by Ted Lerner

(Doha, Qatar)–There was plenty of heartbreak and lots of relief as well inside the spectacularly appointed Al Sadd Sports Club in Doha, Qatar Sunday  as  Day 2 of the 2011 World 9-ball championship has now been completed.

32 players saw their dreams of glory crash out , while 32 others got a much welcome reprieve as all of the matches on the losers side of each group bracket took place.  The field of 128 players from over 40 countries around the world has now been trimmed to 96.

The final two sessions of the day saw several dramatic and pressure packed matches  as players desperately  tried to hang on to their dreams of moving on in the most prestigious pool tournament in the world. One trend that was clear is that the talent level across the globe is growing exponentially, especially in the Middle East. Guys you’d expect to win handily were be taken to the limit by unknowns from countries not normally considered pool breeding grounds.

The Philippines Roberto Gomez came into his match with Jordan’s Almed Naeem Ali as a massive favorite but quickly found himself in a dogfight for survival with the boyish looking 19 year old. The pair were tied at 7 and Gomez had the all clear for the lead but blew a shot on the 7 ball. Ali stepped up and cleared to go up 8-7 in the race to 9 and got himself a big cheer from the nice crowd on hand. Ali then broke for the win but  got robbed when the cue ball got knocked  in.  Gomez looked confused and was clearly under pressure and eventually gave the table back with a poor safety. Ali was heading for the biggest win in Jordanian pool history when he scratched with just three balls on the table. After Gomez tied the match, the Filipino broke and ran for the lucky escape, leaving the youngster from Amman devastated.

POOL’S ELITE PLAYERS ALL LOOK TOUGH AS DAY 1 AT THE WORLD 9-BALL CHAMPIONSHIP COMES TO A CLOSE IN DOHA

Story and Photo by Ted Lerner

(Doha, Qatar)–Over the years pool fans have become accustomed to the opening stages of the World 9-ball championship producing major upsets, with unheralded newcomers  shocking world class players and sending them reeling over to the precarious losers side of their group brackets.  From there the top player is pushed into a do or die situation with every shot carrying the weight of shame and embarrassment if he doesn’t produce.

The storyline that emerged loud and clear last night at the Al Sadd Sports Club in Doha, Qatar, however, was a completely different one. Many of pools big guns were in action in the final two sessions on day 1 and none were even close to being touched or threatened. World 10-ball champion Huidji See, former World 10-ball hampion Darren Appleton, former double world champion Wu Chia Ching, former double world champion Ralf Souquet, former World 9-ball champion Thorsten Hohmann, former US open champion Shane Van Boening, former world 8-ball champion Karl Boyes, Beijing Open winner Chang Jung Lin all romped to victory while barely breaking a sweat.

It could be said that part of the reason for the easy victories by pool’s elite was that the level of competition in the early stages of a 128 man field doesn’t always stack up. And it is true that perhaps more than half the field assembled in Doha has no chance at all to win pool’s most prestigious title. Perhaps only 40 to 50 players have any real chance to raise the trophy on Sunday.

Jeremy Sossie goes undefeated at the
The Lucasi Hybrid NEW England 9 ball Series  drew 68 players for the tours Championship.
Here were some of the notables that were on attendance
Ultimate 10 ball champion Mike the fireball Dechaine, Tom D alfonso, Jeremy sossie
Gareth Steele Ivo petrov Rich Minichello, joey Korsiac  tim perry.
this was the strongest event i have seen in this area in a long time.
format race to your handicap alternating break using magic racks.

The 11th annual Pa. State TAP Titleholder was held on June 2-5, 2011 at the Cooperstown Vets in Derry, Pa. Over 60 teams from 3 states competed for the top prize of $4,000. This annual event is hosted by the Laurel Highlands division of TAP in Western Pa. A total of over $15,000 was paid out in tournament and first place division prize money.
This was the second time the Coopertown Vets (“The Coop”) hosted a major TAP event and they were very pleased with the players and the event in general. They bent over backwards to accommodate the teams with great food and beer prices.

WOMEN’S US OPEN 9-BALL CHAMPIONSHIPS
The Final Bout: And the Winner is… Allison Fisher!

TULSA, OK – Defending champ vs. the world’s best woman player in the history of pool. Who would win? That was the big question and it got answered in a big way as Allison Fisher took the title from 2x US Open Champion Ga Young Kim in a heated battle that Allison won 7-4.

Fisher won the opening break, but couldn’t capitalize, giving the first game win to Kim. But Allison quickly tied things up after Ga Young missed a jump shot, then broke and ran the next two racks to lead 3-1 in the race to seven.

In game five, players traded safes for a few shots until Kim got the first clear look at a shot and ran out to trail 2-3. In game six, a missed bank on the two by Kim again put Allison in the driver’s seat. She ran the rack… to the nine… and uncharacteristically missed, leaving Ga Young Kim an easy nine to tie the match 3-3. She broke and ran to the five, nearly missing it but slopping it in the other corner (with apologies to her opponent), then made a 6-9 combination to pull ahead 4-3.
Breaking in game eight, Kim ran to the three, played safe, but the cue ball slow rolled its way into the corner pocket. Fisher played safe and Kim kicked and made a ball, but missed a bank. Allison played a long six ball and caromed in the nine to tie it up 4-4!

A scratch on a safety attempt in the next game might have resulted in a runout for Kim, but missed position on the five ball caused a miss on a tough five. Allison ran out to again lead the match, 5-4. Fisher broke in game ten and played safe on the one. Ga Young made the hit with her jump cue, but left Allison a clear shot on the one. She executed a perfect runout to get to the hill 6-4!

Allison broke, pocketed the five on the break, made the one ball and then… made a 2-9 combination for the WIN! Visit wpba.com/2011usopen.pdf for a blow by blow of the final match!

1st place – Raphael DaBreo ; 2nd Place – Michael Harrington.
Also includes, on the far right, Kevin Buckley Co-Owner operator of Gotham City Billiards.

Jeanette Lee Visits Memphis at Highpockets

By Bob Hunt

It has to be something special to pull me out of semi retirement and put me back behind this typewriter.  Some experiences are just too good to miss.  On (May 25, 2011) at High Pockets poolroom in Memphis Tennessee, Jeanette Lee performed on tour.  Jeanette is a very special gift to the world of pool.  Her Black Widow flair, her long sensual black hair, and leather attire present her unmistakable trademark.  The poolroom was set up with television flair with no vacant seat visible an hour before show time.  A full house of players and fans were on hand to welcome the Black Widow and the Widow Maker as we sat in expectation to witness a night of pool heaven magic.

Melling won $40,000 and, in the process, declared loud and clear that he will be a force to be reckoned with among an already strong heap of English and European  pool players for the foreseeable future.

(Shanghai, China)–Playing virtually mistake free 9-ball, and seemingly immune to the pressure,

Fu Xiao Fang defeated fellow Chinese and defending champion Chen Siming 9-3 to capture the China Open championship Sunday afternoon in Shanghai.